Prologue
On the first day of summer in 1973, the grandest hotel
and resort in Camden Corners opened for business. The resort was
called simply The Merryweather in
honor of the family who built and resided in the stately old mansion
throughout the 1800s and early 1900s.
Cyrus Merryweather wanted to begin life with his new
bride in the most impressive home in all of Camden Corners. He had
the house built on top of the highest hill in Camden Corners and
ordered the building be so large that no other dwelling would ever
compete with its splendor.
Cyrus and his bride moved into the mansion. Mrs.
Merryweather presented Cyrus with two children. A girl named
Millicent and a boy named Neville. Living on top of the tallest
hill in Camden Corners set Millicent and Neville apart from the other
children of the village.
Neville fell in love with Helene Robinson during his
college days, but because her father was an ordinary shopkeeper,
Cyrus disapproved of the relationship and forced Neville into a
loveless marriage. Neville moved to the neighboring town of
Greensboro with the bride he never loved.
Millicent never moved out of the mansion on the hill.
She became Millicent Merryweather Stout after her marriage. Mr.
Stout was a caring man who knew his wife loved the old homestead and
was willing to finance the constant expense of the place. After
several years, Millicent began running out of funds to support the
upkeep of the place. A solution was to open the first floor as an
antique shop. The shop proved to be successful allowing Millicent to
stay in her beloved home. Through her financial struggles, Millicent
became a true member of the community. She formed everlasting
friendships and found true happiness when she opened her heart and
home to others.
It was the dream of
young entrepreneurs, Tracy Robinson and Holly Mackenzie to preserve
as much of the main building and grounds as possible. The folks of
Camden Corners were skeptical the old place could be restored and
thought the young women may have been in over their heads. They were
determined to follow through with the project. On the day of the
closing, they discovered an old trunk that had been pushed into the
rafters on the third floor. Inside were dozens of journals written
by the women who lived in Camden Corners at the beginning of the 20th
Century. Most every family now residing in Camden Corners had
ancestors who lived and raised families in the small town and were
represented by a journal or two from the past.
After the discovery of the journals, even the most
skeptical of the long time residents began to embrace the idea of
restoring the mansion to its original condition and were more than
willing to lend a hand.
The journals and framed photographs of the men, women
and children decorated the walls and glass cases of a section of the
first floor of the resort. At least three times a day, the cleaning
crew of The Merryweather cleaned fingerprints from the cases as
people were fascinated peering through the glass to read a page or
two of the now famous journals. Each morning a page was turned in
each and every journal to the next day's entry. Residents and
visitors alike felt a special bond with the authors of the diaries
keeping their memories alive long after their passing.
No comments:
Post a Comment